The Creepy Crawler arrives

(The Miles City Star)

Be on the lookout for a giant baby crawling through a field near I-94, chasing a rhinoceros, a bison ... and a velociraptor? That’s the scene being set up about six miles northeast of the Baker Interchange this week by mural artist John Cerney and a team of volunteers.

Called the Creepy Crawler, the display consists of a 16-foot-tall crawling baby, and “life-size” figures of a rhino, velociraptor, and bison, said Cerney on Wednesday at the mural site. It is located between mile markers 147 and 148 on the north side of I-94.

He began creating the pieces two years ago and donated the artwork to the Miles City community. He and volunteers started putting up the four-piece display on the Muggli family land Wednesday and completed it Thursday.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Custer County District High School instructor DeeAnn Sutter and her husband, Chad, put a trip together for the CCDHS Art Club each year. The students raise the money and the Sutters are the guides for the trip.

“On our trip to San Francisco two years ago, we looked for Cerney murals around the central coast area and had the opportunity to visit the artist in his studio,” she said. “Chad grew up seeing his work, and it was always a surprise to see a 20-foot-tall person on the roadside after coming over a hill or around a corner.”

Sutter said during the visit Cerney talked to the kids and asked what eastern Montana was like.

“A few days after our visit he called me and asked if we would like one of his murals in our area, as a donation,” she said. “Chad has been working with John on that for the past two years. He has approval from MDOT for the installation along any interstate or highway in our area, and recently Steve Muggli and his kin have offered a space east of town on the north side of the freeway to install it.”

“It’s intended to be playful and surprising, initially shocking if you will,” Sutter said.

Sutter believes “people will talk about the artwork, hear about it and read about it, and that it will draw people to stop in Miles City and ask a few questions. It will certainly get people talking about the Miles City area and the artwork.”

THE ARTIST

Cerney is from Salinas, Calif., and has painted and sketched many pieces of art that hang on walls (including portraits for many famous people like John Candy and Wayne Gretzky), but he wanted his art to be seen by more people. He began painting murals on barns, but the work was difficult. Later he started constructing figures in his studio and set them in front of the barn murals to give the murals a three-dimensional look. He likes the ease of working in his studio and enjoyed the three-dimensional feel of making the giant plywood cutouts.

Some pieces depict everyday life — like farmers out in the field, a girl reading library books and kids in a treehouse — while others are whimsical— like an alien ship landing (outside of Roswell, N.M.) and the Creepy Crawler in Miles City.

Cerney has been creating giant cutout work since the mid-1990s, and his work has been featured in articles in the New York Times, National Geographic and Sunset magazine, to name a few.

Throughout the year he does commercial art, but once a year he gives away a piece to a community. He hopes to eventually have a piece of roadside art in every state.

“If I live that long,” he laughed.

So far his public art is in 21 states. Among those states, Iowa has four pieces and California has many dotting the landscape. Creepy Crawler is currently the only piece in Montana.

THE LOCAL MURAL

The Creepy Crawler “has no reason for being,” he said. “It’s just a wild idea I had.”

He said some people will laugh when they see it, which is the reaction he hopes for. Others will try to figure out “what’s it all about,” and a few people may even get mad because it doesn’t make any sense.

Though Cerney signs his work, people on the interstate will not be able to see it, which will add to the questions people will have about the work, Cerney said.

On Wednesday Cerney and the volunteers began the process to install it.

He varnishes the wood so it will last longer and uses a water-based acrylic paint specially made for murals.

He expects this mural will last 15-20 years.

“The paint will last longer than the wood,” he said. When wear begins to appear, it’ll still look good from the interstate for some time.

For the bigger pieces, he uses smaller pieces of wood and paints the pieces at random. He takes a picture and cuts it up into the pieces he wants, then puts it in a jar and from time to time pulls out a piece and paints it on wood.

For the “smaller murals,” like the rhino, bison and velociraptor, they are too small to use that process because there isn’t as much margin for error, he said.

The largest mural he has ever created was a cowboy and horse piece that was 22 feet high for an advertising agency in Canada.

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION

He likes the location of his works to have an “in the middle of nowhere feel,” as opposed to near a city where there are distractions and other things that catch a motorist’s eye.

He likes people to be driving along, not expecting to see anything but fields, then come upon it.

Cerney said he’s always looking for new places to put a mural.

This display originally was going to be placed in northern California, then in Arizona, but that fell through also. The problem finding a place is that public officials sometimes confuse public art with advertising billboards. After encountering many problems with various local officials in past locations, he now goes through the Department of Transportation in the different states because those officials understand the difference.

When looking for a location, “I look more for the people who will accept it. A community that will accept it,” he said.

This location on Muggli land was chosen almost two months ago.

While the mural display is free, local donors are supplying materials and labor to get the display installed.

Sutter said they have received material and equipment donations from Bloedorn, Pro-Build, Murdoch’s, Doedens, Miles City Area Chamber of Commerce, Steadman’s Ace Hardware, Cowtown Ag Supply, Magic Construction, Val Dyba and the Sleep Inn. Cerney brought framing lumber and most fasteners. Local contractor Doug Martin helped build the structure to place the baby on, and Chad Sutter helped throughout the installation process. The Art Club bought food and all other miscellaneous last-minute items. DeeAnn Sutter and family helped with whatever was needed.

Cerney will make postcards of the landscape mural, and sign some of them, for the Art Club to sell and help make up for their costs.

After this he will work on a commercial piece that will be in front of a factory in Watsonville, Calif, for the Martinelli company, which makes Sparkling Apple Cider.

For more of his artwork, visit [johncerney.com].

Looks kinda like the Gerbers' baby!

Cool

I googled it -
[roadsideamerica.com]

Sorry, I don't get it. I zoomed in to max but don't understand. Someone must have spent much effort to do this but it's over my head.

Strange

Those are very creative straw bale construction. I saw many diferent ones in Kansas .